Subject:The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon06/27/17 at 1:04 pm

So, I was thinking about the popularity of the 5th Generation in gaming and I honestly think it's overestimated. It seems like there wasn't truly any competition during that era until at least late 1998 or 1999 because the Saturn was not selling as much, and the N64 had less games at that time. Plus, the games (except SM64, Goldeneye and MK64) that came to define the N64 were not released until much later. The PS1 clearly dominated the first half of the era from 1996 to most of 1998 due to its price, the huge amount of games and that it was considered cool and mature for the general audience.

What are your thoughts on this summary everyone? Is this correct or is there something missing from the topic?

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mach!ne_he@don06/27/17 at 2:36 pm

The 5th generation was definitely not that competitive. The PS1 completely dominated things from start to finish. It's true that the N64 did get some huge games later during 1998, 1999 and 2000 like Zelda, Paper Mario and Donkey Kong 64, but even then the PS1 had the Spyro trilogy, Crash Team Racing and Final Fantasy IX, so there was never truly a point where the N64 had an advantage when it came to games.

The thing that just totally killed the N64 was the decision by Nintendo to stick with carts. They were much more expensive than CD's to manufacture and didn't have as much space, leading several major companies that had been with Nintendo for years like Capcom, Konami and Squaresoft to jump ship to Sony. Not only was the PS1 seen as the cooler console because it had CD based games, but it was cheaper, and had a better variety of games. Honestly, I love the N64, but it never really had a chance against the PS1 during the 5th gen.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:Stillinthe90son06/27/17 at 3:01 pm

The fifth generation wasn't as competitive as the fourth or maybe the sixth generation, but that doesn't mean it wasn't popular. It was hugely popular.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon06/27/17 at 3:21 pm

The fifth generation wasn't as competitive as the fourth or maybe the sixth generation, but that doesn't mean it wasn't popular. It was hugely popular.Oh. It definitely was; however, some believe that it gained popularity as soon as the N64 was released when that wasn't the case. For the first 3 years of the 5th generation, the PS1 was dominating the battlefield without competition.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:Stillinthe90son06/27/17 at 3:34 pm

Oh. It definitely was; however, some believe that it gained popularity as soon as the N64 was released when that wasn't the case. For the first 3 years of the 5th generation, the PS1 was dominating the battlefield without competition.

The N64 might have been the first big breakthrough of the fifth generation, with Mario 64. In 1995 and even most of 1996, the SNES was probably more present in households than any fifth gen console. But in 1997, PS1 got FF7 and other big titles and became the dominant force, though N64 was definitely well known and appreciated throughout the late 90s with Zelda, Goldeneye, and party gaming.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:Sir Rothchildon06/27/17 at 3:42 pm

As someone who loves the Nintendo 64 to death, it could be understandable that the console was made at a time where Nintendo was making a lot of stupid mistakes. For one thing, they stuck with cartridges because of the lack of loading times. However, it didn't go out as well as CDs, since they were more expensive to make and didn't have enough space. Hence why they have the Expansion Pak on certain games like Donkey Kong 64 and Perfect Dark (which the latter title is my favorite N64 game imo). It also lead towards Capcom, Squaresoft, and even Konami to switch with Sony for a better reputation. That alone made Nintendo a laughingstock ever since the Nintendo 64 was released in June 1996 (in Japan).

Another factor is that the Playstation kicked ass for the most part. Not only was it the best-selling console in the 5th generation (where it sold over 100 million units, compared to the N64's 32.93 million sold), but it's also the well known console of the 5th generation. Barely anybody had a Sega Saturn in the mid and late 90s, while the N64 didn't do jack sh*t between 1996-2001. The PS1 on the other hand was so common in the 5th generation that even casual gamers had it. Hell, even 2000s kids could recognize the PS1 more than anything Nintendo has made in the past 20 years (except for stuff like the GBA, Nintendo DS and Wii). I even remember using an actual PS1, where I played one of the Namco Museum games. That was in my grandma's house of all things, by the way.

So clearly, the 5th generation was by far the weakest Nintendo has seen before the Wii U was released. Proving that Nintendo didn't do well at the time until the Nintendo DS was released. Which makes sense because the Nintendo DS is one of the best selling handheld consoles of all time, where it was the gold standard for Nintendo ever since.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon06/28/17 at 2:07 pm

The N64 might have been the first big breakthrough of the fifth generation, with Mario 64. In 1995 and even most of 1996, the SNES was probably more present in households than any fifth gen console. But in 1997, PS1 got FF7 and other big titles and became the dominant force, though N64 was definitely well known and appreciated throughout the late 90s with Zelda, Goldeneye, and party gaming.Yeah, that game clearly made N64 big when it was first released; however, I'm just saying there wasn't any competition until at least Ocarina of Time. I agree though that the SNES still had a presence in homes during the years mentioned. It would have been rare to have a PS1 when it first came out since it didnt have anything.

As someone who loves the Nintendo 64 to death, it could be understandable that the console was made at a time where Nintendo was making a lot of stupid mistakes. For one thing, they stuck with cartridges because of the lack of loading times. However, it didn't go out as well as CDs, since they were more expensive to make and didn't have enough space. Hence why they have the Rumble Pak on certain games like Donkey Kong 64 and Perfect Dark (which the latter title is my favorite N64 game imo). It also lead towards Capcom, Squaresoft, and even Konami to switch with Sony for a better reputation. That alone made Nintendo a laughingstock ever since the Nintendo 64 was released in June 1996 (in Japan).

Another factor is that the Playstation kicked ass for the most part. Not only was it the best-selling console in the 5th generation (where it sold over 100 million units, compared to the N64's 32.93 million sold), but it's also the well known console of the 5th generation. Barely anybody had a Sega Saturn in the mid and late 90s, while the N64 didn't do jack sh*t between 1996-2001. The PS1 on the other hand was so common in the 5th generation that even casual gamers had it. Hell, even 2000s kids could recognize the PS1 more than anything Nintendo has made in the past 20 years (except for stuff like the GBA, Nintendo DS and Wii). I even remember using an actual PS1, where I played one of the Namco Museum games. That was in my grandma's house of all things, by the way.

So clearly, the 5th generation was by far the weakest Nintendo has seen before the Wii U was released. Proving that Nintendo didn't do well at the time until the Nintendo DS was released. Which makes sense because the Nintendo DS is one of the best selling handheld consoles of all time, where it was the gold standard for Nintendo ever since.I think you mean the expansion pak. The rumble pak was for the vibration of the N64 controller and I thought the console was out in March of that year in Japan. Maybe I'm wrong. Oh, and I wouldn't say that the N64 didn't have anything amazing thorughout its span. That was more for 1996 to most of '98 since it only had a few fantastic games. By the time OoT came out, the system was on its way to become competitive with the PS1.

OTT, that was a great summary. I do agree that the PS1 was everywhere. In fact, I recall seeing more commercials for that system than the N64 overall.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:Sir Rothchildon06/28/17 at 2:13 pm

I think you mean the expansion pak. The rumble pak was for the vibration of the N64 controller and I thought the console was out in March of that year in Japan. Maybe I'm wrong.

You're right about it being the Expansion Pak. I didn't realize while I was writing my post. Although, the console itself was first released in Japan on June 23, 1996. It was released in North America by September of 1996, which is 3 months after its initial release.

Oh, and I wouldn't say that the N64 didn't have anything amazing thorughout its span. That was more for 1996 to most of '98 since it only had a few fantastic games. By the time OoT came out, the system was on its way to become competitive with the PS1.

Even by mid 1998, the PS1 was still kicking the N64's ass nonstop. Sure you had some of Nintendo's greatest hits released by the N64, but the damage was already done when they stuck with cartridges up until the Gamecube was released. But even with that, Nintendo still sucked since the Gamecube's media was technically a mini-DVD. That would make the PS2's lifespan more successful, since they used the regular-sized DVD. Although, Nintendo was pretty successful with the handheld market thanks to the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon06/28/17 at 2:23 pm

You're right about it being the Expansion Pak. I didn't realize while I was writing my post. Although, the console itself was first released in Japan on June 23, 1996. It was released in North America by September of 1996, which is 3 months after its initial release.

Even by mid 1998, the PS1 was still kicking the N64's ass nonstop. Sure you had some of Nintendo's greatest hits released by the N64, but the damage was already done when they stuck with cartridges up until the Gamecube was released. But even with that, Nintendo still sucked since the Gamecube's media was technically a mini-DVD. That would make the PS2's lifespan more successful, since they used the regular-sized DVD. Although, Nintendo was pretty successful with the handheld market thanks to the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS.Oh. For some reason, I read that the N64 was released in March 1996 in Japan and not June.

True on that. They weren't #1 again until the wii I bet had Nintendo went with CDs for the N64, they would have had over 500 games instead of 300.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:TheReignMan99on06/28/17 at 2:27 pm

The PS1 in general was popular with a wider range of people (young kids to adults). Meanwhile, the N64 was primarily popular with Nintendo fans and little kids. The sales numbers prove that :P.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon06/28/17 at 2:30 pm

The PS1 in general was popular with a wider range of people (young kids to adults). Meanwhile, the N64 was primarily popular with Nintendo fans and little kids. The sales numbers prove that :P.Agreed! Imagine N64 was more mature than the PS1? The competition would have been badass!

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:TheReignMan99on06/28/17 at 2:34 pm

Agreed! Imagine N64 was more mature than the PS1? The competition would have been badass!

That would have been crazy :D.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:Sir Rothchildon06/28/17 at 2:46 pm

True on that. They weren't #1 again until the wii I bet had Nintendo went with CDs for the N64, they would have had over 500 games instead of 300.

If Nintendo used CDs/DVDs to introduce the N64 instead of the Gamecube, then Nintendo and Sony would've had real competition. It could even lead to Nintendo being taken more seriously back in the late 90s and early-mid 2000s.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:Looney Toonon06/28/17 at 7:46 pm

The only TRUE console wars where things were competitive were the 4th and 7th gens. The 1st and 2nd gens don't have a history of competition between consoles except until the end of the 2nd gen which caused the Great Gaming Crash of 1983. The 3rd gen was dominated by Nintendo only.

The 4th gen was the only one where Nintendo and Sega were neck & neck with each other. Spawning a ton of ads talking about how one is better than the other and kids arguing back and forth about whether Mario and Final Fight or Sonic and Streets of Rage was better.

The 5th gen was basically Sony's dominated era for gaming. Nintendo and Sega were beaten. (Funny how in the 4th gen Nintendo and Sega were heavy competitors, but then Sony came and destroyed both of them like it was nothing).

The 6th gen is like the 5th gen. Sony released the PS2 and it is still the worlds best selling console of all time. Sega stopped making consoles. Nintendo had another failure and while Microsoft had more success for the first try at consoles they still came in at a distance 2nd place.

The 7th gen was back to the competitive war. The Wii was the best seller, but most people agree that its sucess was mostly a fluck as the millions that bought the Wii only played it a few times before letting it collect dust. Meanwhile the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 is where the great Microsoft vs Sony war began with both going head to head with each other. The Wii was the victor in the end but most gamers were mostly eyeing the PS3 and X360 consoles.

The 8th gen is like the 7th gen, but to slighty lesser degree. The PS4 is dominating, but Microsoft has been making some great gains ever since their turnaroud back in 2014. The XOne started increasing in sales, but the PS4 will most likely be the victor. The Wii U basically went the way of the Gamecube and N64 (although it sold less than both of these) as most 8th gen gamers were just eyeing the PS4 and XBOne.

Now the in the 9th gen the Nintendo Switch is making the numbers, but I think this is just due to Nintendo being the early birds. They released their console really early (they had no choice due to the Wii U's failure) while Microsoft and Sony are still busy making the most of the 8th gen and won't get into the 9th gen until 2019-2021, I think.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:Sir Rothchildon06/28/17 at 8:39 pm

The only TRUE console wars where things were competitive were the 4th and 7th gens. The 1st and 2nd gens don't have a history of competition between consoles except until the end of the 2nd gen which caused the Great Gaming Crash of 1983. The 3rd gen was dominated by Nintendo only.

The 4th gen was the only one where Nintendo and Sega were neck & neck with each other. Spawning a ton of ads talking about how one is better than the other and kids arguing back and forth about whether Mario and Final Fight or Sonic and Streets of Rage was better.

The 5th gen was basically Sony's dominated era for gaming. Nintendo and Sega were beaten. (Funny how in the 4th gen Nintendo and Sega were heavy competitors, but then Sony came and destroyed both of them like it was nothing).

The 6th gen is like the 5th gen. Sony released the PS2 and it is still the worlds best selling console of all time. Sega stopped making consoles. Nintendo had another failure and while Microsoft had more success for the first try at consoles they still came in at a distance 2nd place.

The 7th gen was back to the competitive war. The Wii was the best seller, but most people agree that its sucess was mostly a fluck as the millions that bought the Wii only played it a few times before letting it collect dust. Meanwhile the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 is where the great Microsoft vs Sony war began with both going head to head with each other. The Wii was the victor in the end but most gamers were mostly eyeing the PS3 and X360 consoles.

The 8th gen is like the 7th gen, but to slighty lesser degree. The PS4 is dominating, but Microsoft has been making some great gains ever since their turnaroud back in 2014. The XOne started increasing in sales, but the PS4 will most likely be the victor. The Wii U basically went the way of the Gamecube and N64 (although it sold less than both of these) as most 8th gen gamers were just eyeing the PS4 and XBOne.

Now the in the 9th gen the Nintendo Switch is making the numbers, but I think this is just due to Nintendo being the early birds. They released their console really early (they had no choice due to the Wii U's failure) while Microsoft and Sony are still busy making the most of the 8th gen and won't get into the 9th gen until 2019-2021, I think.

Quite frankly, the 4th generation is the only one that was actually competitive and had memorable games.

The 1st and 2nd generations were basically the start of the video gaming industry, which is why they didn't have competition to start with. The only consoles that were noteworthy at the time was the Atari 2600 and the Magnavox Odyssey. The former being more popular because it was associated with several tie-ins with existing movies and TV shows (e.g. E.T.).

The 3rd generation like you said was truly dominated by Nintendo. Any kid during the late 80s mostly heard of the NES, especially since they advertised the hell out of the console nonstop. It was like the Atari 2600 of Nintendo's consoles, considering of how iconic it was to the company.

The 4th generation was the Super Nintendo vs. Sega Genesis. Even though the Super Nintendo was technologically superior compared to the Genesis, they still created a mass ton of gamest that nobody ever forgotten from their childhood. For the Genesis, you had games like the Sonic trilogy, the Streets of Rage trilogy, Shining Force, Phantasy Star II, Ristar, and Comix Zone. The Super Nintendo had games like Super Mario World, Super Mario Kart, Final Fantasy (albeit a censored version from the Japanese game), Yoshi's Island, and Kirby Super Star. The early and mid 90s were great to video games because of that competition.

The 5th generation was basically the Playstation era. The N64 was barely in 2nd place, since the PS1 sold twice more units than the N64 has ever made worldwide. It was also the start of Nintendo's first dark age from the late 90s to the late 2000s, where they haven't truly made anything good outside of the Game Boy market.

The 6th generation was like the the 5th, but it was around the time where Microsoft hit the scene. Although the Xbox was an alternative for the PS2 to most gamers. So Sony still dominated the gaming industry by the 6th gen, only that it was slightly competing with Microsoft.

The 7th generation was a bit competitive, only because Nintendo took their advertising techniques more seriously and targeted the Wii towards casual gamers. The Xbox 360 was 2nd place, but their games was more targeted towards hardcore gamers. Which made the 7th gen go for Sony rather than Nintendo, even though Nintendo was winning the battle financially. As for the PS3, it was a cultural icon during the late 2000s, but not as much as the Wii.

The 8th generation was Nintendo's second dark age, as they couldn't do well with the Wii U. Some even saw it as the Virtual Boy 2.0, since it was full of first party games. There was also barely any third party support, which didn't do well with its sales. Although I think the reason why the Wii U didn't do so good was because of the unoriginal name. I mean, who names their console as their previous one, but adds a letter to it. Same with the Xbox One, except it did have third party support. The PS4 is basically the only one that's worth buying with most gamers. Unless you consider yourself a PC gamer, which is a better alternative than consoles.

The 9th generation would probably be the same as the 7th and 8th, except either Sony or Nintendo would battle against each other. It could be a competition like Nintendo and Sega, but most people would probably buy a PS5 more than the Switch. Although the Switch wouldn't turn out as bad as the Dreamcast, while they turn into a third party developer.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:TheReignMan99on06/28/17 at 9:01 pm

Sir Rothchild....the Xbox 360 actually came in 2nd during the 7th generation not the PS3.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon07/18/17 at 5:52 pm

If Nintendo used CDs/DVDs to introduce the N64 instead of the Gamecube, then Nintendo and Sony would've had real competition. It could even lead to Nintendo being taken more seriously back in the late 90s and early-mid 2000s. That too!; however, Nintendo did provide reasons why they went with cartridges instead of CDs for the N64 despite that it wasn't a good move.

The only TRUE console wars where things were competitive were the 4th and 7th gens. The 1st and 2nd gens don't have a history of competition between consoles except until the end of the 2nd gen which caused the Great Gaming Crash of 1983. The 3rd gen was dominated by Nintendo only.

The 4th gen was the only one where Nintendo and Sega were neck & neck with each other. Spawning a ton of ads talking about how one is better than the other and kids arguing back and forth about whether Mario and Final Fight or Sonic and Streets of Rage was better.

The 5th gen was basically Sony's dominated era for gaming. Nintendo and Sega were beaten. (Funny how in the 4th gen Nintendo and Sega were heavy competitors, but then Sony came and destroyed both of them like it was nothing).

The 6th gen is like the 5th gen. Sony released the PS2 and it is still the worlds best-selling console of all time. Sega stopped making consoles. Nintendo had another failure and while Microsoft had more success for the first try at consoles they still came in at a distance 2nd place.

The 7th gen was back to the competitive war. The Wii was the best seller, but most people agree that its success was mostly a fluke as the millions that bought the Wii only played it a few times before letting it collect dust. Meanwhile, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 is where the great Microsoft vs Sony war began with both going heads to head with each other. The Wii was the victor in the end but most gamers were mostly eyeing the PS3 and X360 consoles.

The 8th gen is like the 7th gen, but to a slightly lesser degree. The PS4 is dominating, but Microsoft has been making some great gains ever since their turnaround back in 2014. The XOne started increasing in sales, but the PS4 will most likely be the victor. The Wii U basically went the way of the Gamecube and N64 (although it sold less than both of these) as most 8th gen gamers were just eyeing the PS4 and XBOne.

Now the in the 9th gen the Nintendo Switch is making the numbers, but I think this is just due to Nintendo being the early birds. They released their console really early (they had no choice due to the Wii U's failure) while Microsoft and Sony are still busy making the most of the 8th gen and won't get into the 9th gen until 2019-2021, I think.

Quite frankly, the 4th generation is the only one that was actually competitive and had memorable games.

The 1st and 2nd generations were basically the starts of the video gaming industry, which is why they didn't have a competition to start with. The only consoles that were noteworthy at the time were the Atari 2600 and the Magnavox Odyssey. The former being more popular because it was associated with several tie-ins with existing movies and TV shows (e.g. E.T.).

The 3rd generation like you said was truly dominated by Nintendo. Any kid during the late 80s mostly heard of the NES, especially since they advertised the hell out of the console nonstop. It was like the Atari 2600 of Nintendo's consoles, considering how iconic it was to the company.

The 4th generation was the Super Nintendo vs. Sega Genesis. Even though the Super Nintendo was technologically superior compared to the Genesis, they still created a mass ton of games that nobody forgot from their childhood. For the Genesis, you had games like the Sonic trilogy, the Streets of Rage trilogy, Shining Force, Phantasy Star II, Ristar, and Comix Zone. The Super Nintendo had games like Super Mario World, Super Mario Kart, Final Fantasy (albeit a censored version of the Japanese game), Yoshi's Island, and Kirby Super Star. The early and mid-90s were great to video games because of that competition.

The 5th generation was basically the PlayStation era. The N64 was barely in 2nd place since the PS1 sold twice more units than the N64 has ever made worldwide. It was also the start of Nintendo's first dark age from the late 90s to the late 2000s, where they haven't truly made anything good outside of the Game Boy market.

The 6th generation was like the 5th, but it was around the time where Microsoft hit the scene. Although the Xbox was an alternative for the PS2 to most gamers. So Sony still dominated the gaming industry by the 6th gen, only that it was slightly competing with Microsoft.

The 7th generation was a bit competitive, only because Nintendo took their advertising techniques more seriously and targeted the Wii towards casual gamers. The Xbox 360 was 2nd place, but their games were more targeted towards hardcore gamers. Which made the 7th gen go for Sony rather than Nintendo, even though Nintendo was winning the battle financially. As for the PS3, it was a cultural icon during the late 2000s, but not as much as the Wii.

The 8th generation was Nintendo's second dark age, as they couldn't do well with the Wii U. Some even saw it as the Virtual Boy 2.0, since it was full of first party games. There was also barely any third party support, which didn't do well with its sales. Although I think the reason why the Wii U didn't do so good was that of the unoriginal name. I mean, who names their console as their previous one, but adds a letter to it. Same with the Xbox One, except it did have third party support. The PS4 is basically the only one that's worth buying with most gamers. Unless you consider yourself a PC gamer, which is a better alternative than consoles.

The 9th generation would probably be the same as the 7th and 8th, except either Sony or Nintendo would battle against each other. It could be a competition like Nintendo and Sega, but most people would probably buy a PS5 more than the Switch. Although the Switch wouldn't turn out as bad as the Dreamcast, while they turn into a third party developer.Damn! these are great analysis! I definitely agree that the 4th and the 7th are the only ones so far to have a huge competition. I'm not sure if that will make a comeback once Sony and Microsoft hit the 9th gen depending on where Nintendo takes the Switch.

Sir Rothchild....the Xbox 360 actually came in 2nd during the 7th generation, not the PS3.More like 1st place. By the time the 7th gen ended, the PS3 was 2nd while the Wii was dead last.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:TheReignMan99on07/18/17 at 7:10 pm

More like 1st place. By the time the 7th gen ended, the PS3 was 2nd while the Wii was dead last.

Nah. Look at the sales data....the Wii came in 1st, Xbox 360 came in 2nd, PS3 in 3rd.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon07/18/17 at 7:15 pm

Nah. Look at the sales data....the Wii came in 1st, Xbox 360 came in 2nd, PS3 in 3rd.Yeah in sales, the Wii was 1st; however, the 360 was first overall.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:TheReignMan99on07/18/17 at 7:20 pm

Yeah in sales, the Wii was 1st; however, the 360 was first overall.

Yeah but he was talking about sales.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon07/18/17 at 8:05 pm

Yeah but he was talking about sales.Oh. My bad. I thought you were correcting him on that the 360 was 2nd overall.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:yelimsexaon07/21/17 at 6:40 am

So, I was thinking about the popularity of the 5th Generation in gaming and I honestly think it's overestimated. It seems like there wasn't truly any competition during that era until at least late 1998 or 1999 because the Saturn was not selling as much, and the N64 had less games at that time. Plus, the games (except SM64, Goldeneye and MK64) that came to define the N64 were not released until much later. The PS1 clearly dominated the first half of the era from 1996 to most of 1998 due to its price, the huge amount of games and that it was considered cool and mature for the general audience.

What are your thoughts on this summary everyone? Is this correct or is there something missing from the topic?

Well, most gaming eras have some overlap to them, as we currently are right now between the 8th and 9th gens. The big lure about the 5th generation was that it was the first all-3D era of gaming, and despite the horribly cheesy polygon graphics associated with this generation today in a similar vein to the 1st/2nd gens, the first year and a half of the era still had many buying later-era SNES/Genesis titles like Sonic 3D Blast, Super Mario RPG, Donkey Kong Country 2 & 3, and of course catalog titles that they hadn't had to chance to play with. Really, only 1998 and the first two-thirds of 1999 were the real definitive 5th Gen moments in the sun, as of course Sega's Dreamcast was basically the Switch of the 6th Gen, with its early bird release similar the a "Genesis Does what Nintendon't" campaign on steroids until their competitors new systems get released, forcing them to go more creative such as building their failed online service. Even though N64 was slower to get going, I felt that it definitely had a quality over quantity mantra, with Saturn the opposite, and PlayStation simply having more quantity due to more support but almost as much quality as N64. Still, this era doesn't quite have the iconic nostalgia that the 3rd/4th gens provide.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon07/21/17 at 6:51 pm

Well, most gaming eras have some overlap to them, as we currently are right now between the 8th and 9th gens. The big lure about the 5th generation was that it was the first all-3D era of gaming, and despite the horribly cheesy polygon graphics associated with this generation today in a similar vein to the 1st/2nd gens, the first year and a half of the era still had many buying later-era SNES/Genesis titles like Sonic 3D Blast, Super Mario RPG, Donkey Kong Country 2 & 3, and of course catalog titles that they hadn't had to chance to play with. Really, only 1998 and the first two-thirds of 1999 were the real definitive 5th Gen moments in the sun, as of course Sega's Dreamcast was basically the Switch of the 6th Gen, with its early bird release similar the a "Genesis Does what Nintendon't" campaign on steroids until their competitors new systems get released, forcing them to go more creative such as building their failed online service. Even though N64 was slower to get going, I felt that it definitely had a quality over quantity mantra, with Saturn the opposite, and PlayStation simply having more quantity due to more support but almost as much quality as N64. Still, this era doesn't quite have the iconic nostalgia that the 3rd/4th gens provide. That's actually true. In fact, I bet there were commercials still showing 4th generation games and consoles in 1997 despite the 5th gen consoles already being released. I don't think anyone truly heard the battle of the latter until 1998 when all the consoles had quality games that would be memorable except the few early ones that each 5th gen system had at the time.

I definitely agree about the N64. There were so many quality games from that console that people have nostalgia for that they're willing to play them again despite the terrible graphics.

Man, I wish it did. Some people just don't know how important the 5th generation was to gaming. It introduced many aspects that would be later used for future generations, and it had lots of iconic games that are very memorable.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mach!ne_he@don07/23/17 at 1:17 pm

That's actually true. In fact, I bet there were commercials still showing 4th generation games and consoles in 1997 despite the 5th gen consoles already being released. I don't think anyone truly heard the battle of the latter until 1998 when all the consoles had quality games that would be memorable except the few early ones that each 5th gen system had at the time.

I definitely agree about the N64. There were so many quality games from that console that people have nostalgia for that they're willing to play them again despite the terrible graphics.

Man, I wish it did. Some people just don't know how important the 5th generation was to gaming. It introduced many aspects that would be later used for future generations, and it had lots of iconic games that are very memorable.

Yeah, I was still buying 4th gen games until 1998. The last 4th gen game I ever got was NFL '98 for my birthday during July 1998. For the most part, it was still pretty common to see 4th gen games on store shelves until the latter months of 1998, and even up to early 1999 I remember seeing some.

Subject:Re: The popularity of the 5th Gaming Generation is a exaggeration

Written By:mxcrashxmon07/24/17 at 10:25 pm

Yeah, I was still buying 4th gen games until 1998. The last 4th gen game I ever got was NFL '98 for my birthday during July 1998. For the most part, it was still pretty common to see 4th gen games on store shelves until the latter months of 1998, and even up to early 1999 I remember seeing some.Agreed on and me too! I was even buying them until the end of 1999 especially since whenever I would go to stores, there would be Genesis and SNES titles.